Welcome to Paradise
by Iuvixra
Summary: The rating will come into play for latter scenes of violence, and gore. As well as the question of heaven and hell. Perhaps unacceptable to some. Reality and fiction become inseperable for the rurouni..


The title actually belongs to something else I'm working on, but I thought it might make a good one for this. In the beginning, I'd intended to make this a one-shot.. But I kept losing my progress, and just finally settled to editing it again. I do intend to soon update the other... the story is the same as in this case. My computer is cruel.

But as you may know, I do not own Rurouni Kenshin... Nor am I in any way affiliated with the creator, or producer. Thank you.

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The scent of blood painted the stale air as it blanketed the ground, nearly illuminated by the thing shafts of moonlight filtering through the blanket of clouds. Blinking heavily, the rurouni stood, staggering lightly under the caress of exhaustion that had yet to leave his limbs, and uncertain of where he was...And so with a sigh, he raised a hand to find his features, seeking an abrasion to blame the fatigue upon. None found, he took to rubbing his temples gingerly with his fingertips of his free hand, slowly becoming aware that the other clenched painfully around the sword he could recognize by mere feel. Letting the agony of a headache fade from his mind, the red head eyed the blade, trying to make out the stains embracing the steel. Freezing, he lent his eyes more carefully to the blade, the sheen of blood unmistakable. Lips parting in a silent gasp, he let the blade fall from his hand, taking a step away as if it had been poisoned to stare at it, awareness of his surroundings coming more naturally as time passed... Mind whirling, he let his gaze shift numbly from the sword to his surroundings, unblinking as he searched the heavy shadows for any clue otherwise...But where he stood was so obviously a grave yard..

Small pools of blood painted the tossed soil, broken by jagged stones marking the final resting place for the corpses planted in the garden of death. Decay and fresh blood hung like perfume in the air, and the rurouni, shook his head, trying to chase the phantoms from his mind, untrusting that his surroundings were real. Swallowing the bitter taste of rot from his senses, the rurouni started forward, stepping forth hesitantly, a foot merely brushing his fallen sword. The shadows he remained always aware of, despite the cautious tread to avoid pools of blood that lined the ground. Even then his surroundings remained hazy in his mind, and he flinched at the sound of wind in the dead trees that clung to the yard, unable to dismiss eerie the feeling the branches were reaching for him.

Dismal weeping brushed past his ears, and the rurouni again found himself rigid, aching for the sword he'd cast aside, though somehow sure it would be unnecessary. Ever cautiously he stole toward the bitter sounds, wary that his senses seemed so down that he couldn't detect even notes of despair that rang upon the air. Fingers of darkness oozed from pores in the ground, blanketing the mounds marking the graves. It seemed to lap against his feet as he walked, easily concealing the shattered soul from the probe of his gaze, and in a dim moment of paranoia, he supposed the darkness was his own, not discarded by the souls of the wasted, though it was an unlikely superstition. Yet the sound grew steadily, the wailing almost unnatural, and the rurouni let his tongue find his newly dried lips but briefly, breath hard to come by in the thick air. Foot coming into contact with something solid, he stiffened, pulse rising more than he was sure it should.

Peering through the almost ink-like blackness upon the ground, the rurouni blinked, uncertain with what his eyes strayed upon. Blood painted the soft ivory slope, and he frowned, following the dirtied form to features he could never have expected, a gasp ripped from his throat at the realization that what he saw was a girl...And a girl he knew well. She was nude save for the blood and dirt, and perhaps mercifully unconscious, save for the whimpers that passed her lips. Dropping to his knees beside her, the red head scanned her features, seeking an explanation for the carnage delivered upon her delicate form...But the only concept he came to grasp was responsibility... And he swallowed once more, pushing down the fear that he'd carved the blood from her veins to spill over her. "No..." Though he'd meant to whisper her name, his tongue didn't move, dead though his lips formed the words. Raising a trembling hand, he reached to brush her cheek, if only to wake her, hoping against logic her injuries were but part of some filthy prank...

But rather than her cheek, the rurounis' had came across only cool water... And he blinked, starring numbly into the basin into which he'd plunged his hand, uncertain how the newest of transitions had come to be. . Breathing heavily, he swallowed, searching the water for the cruel images again, but only his own rested in the basin, cheeks ripped of color as viciously as the blood had been from her veins. Shaking his head, the rurouni drew his hands from the water, gaze falling upon them as though some trace of blood should have been evident. But even the smell had been washed away, lingering only as a ghost upon his conscience, her sobs echoing alongside... With the unforgiving images of her broken body.

The cheerful sunlight, he knew, was proof enough he'd fallen into some sort of dream... But the meaning was uncertain where the details were not. Letting his eyes fall to the ground, the rurouni pushed himself to his feet, a weary hand finding his temples as it had as the vision had opened. The fresh memories pursued his every thought, dampening any initiative to return to the dojo. He could use a walk.

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Just to let you know...The title... Is more ironic than anything. I have a taste for this sort of story... And the genre escapes me... So bear with me. The rating will come into play... Though this is no lemon... Romance will be sparse.

If you have ideas or questions, feel free to email me... I believe it's listed for view. I otherwise have msn messenger, and AIM. My email address is my MSN messenger screen name... For aim... hitaku no hikary is advised...I'll no doubt be invisable, so send an IM to be on the safe side... Or check my info before sending. Thank you again.


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